The Gillette Company, a world leader in men’s grooming products particularly safety razors and a subsidiary of Procter & Gamble, filed a patent infringement case against Dollar Shave Club, an upstart online razor supplier.
Gillette filed its patent infringement case in the U.S. District Court in Delaware On Thursday. In its complaint, the Procter & Gamble subsidiary alleged that Dollar Shave Club violated its patented technology including a blade coating on some of its products including the Mach3, Venus and Fusion razors.
Gillette asked court to stop Dollar Shave Club from selling razors
Gillette argued that the patented the blade coatings keep the blade of its razors sharp, and requested the court to stop Dollar Shave Club from selling razors that violated its patent.
The Procter & Gamble subsidiary pointed out that it owns all rights, title and interest in the patent in question.
The allegedly infringing products of Dollar Shave Club include The Humble Twin, The 4X, and The Executive.
Gillette invests significantly in developing is shaving technology
Kata Buckley, the spokeswoman for Gillette, said, “We invest significantly in developing the best shaving technology in the world — so we don’t take it lightly when competitors illegally use our patented technology. This lawsuit seeks to stop this violation of our intellectual property immediately.”
Mr. King C. Gillette established Gillette with the invention of the first safety razor in 1901. The company’s lawsuit provided details about its shaving innovations for more than a century.
Currently, Gillette has two research and development centers located in Boston and Reading, United Kingdom. The company holds 70% of the safety razor market worldwide.
Dollar Shave Club is reviewing the lawsuit
Dollar Shave Club is based in Venice, California. Michael Dubin established the company in 2012. He launched the company’s products using a YouTube video wherein he told customers, “Our blades are f–ing great.” The video became popular, and it was viewed more than 21 million times.
Dollar Shave Clun has approximately two million members. The company accounts approximately 10% of the market share for men’s razor cartridges in the United States.
Dollar Shave Club’s spokesperson said the company is reviewing the lawsuit and refused to comment on the matter.